What's New at BCIS

For some people, Victoria Day is a sign that summer is just around the corner.

The holiday, which is only celebrated in Canada and Scotland, began as a celebration to honour Queen Victoria’s birthday. The British queen was born on May 24, 1819. She was the longest reigning monarch in England, remaining on her throne for 63 years, 216 days until September 9th, 2015 when Queen Elizabeth II took the title of longest reigning mon-arch in British history.
Victoria Day was declared a Canadian holiday by the govern-ment in 1845. At that time, it was celebrated
with picnics, parades, sporting tournaments, fireworks, and cannon salutes. When Queen Victoria died in 1901, Canada’s parliament officially named the holiday Victoria Day. It was decided that the day would be celebrated on or about, May 24th each year to allow Canadians a long week-end to enjoy!

BCIS is a not-for-profit organization, which provides settlement and integration services to all immigrants, refugees and temporary foreign workers. It is a project of Calgary Catholic Immigration Society.